Juan Gris, an exceptional painter
Juan Gris is a Spanish painter famous for his paintings of breakfast, the guitar and the violin. If you’re visiting Madrid on your next vacation, it’s a golden opportunity to discover his works at the Reina Sofia Museum. A true icon of Cubism, he worked with the greatest painters such as Picasso and Braque. Find out more about the life of Juan Gris, cubism, his works and much more in this article.
Juan Gris and cubism, biography
Juan Gris, born José Victoriano Carmelo Carlos González-Pérez, was born in Madrid on March 23, 1887. A Spanish painter and founder of Cubism, he is known for his unique, modern works that changed the art world.
Juan Gris learned to draw at the Escuela de Artes y Manufacturas in Madrid between 1902 and 1904. From 1904 to 1905, the academician José Maria Carbonero taught him painting.
In 1906, after his military service, he moved to Paris, where he became friends with Henri Matisse, Georges Braque, Guillaume Apollinaire and Fernand Léger, as well as Pablo Picasso.
Discover Juan Gris at the Reina Sofia Museum
The Reina Sofia Museum is one of Spain’s most famous museums. Here you’ll find works by Juan Gris, Picasso and Miro.
To better understand the artists’ approach, the definition of Cubism and the history of the Civil War, we recommend a visit to the Reina Sofia Museum with an English-speaking guide. You’ll experience a unique and authentic visit in a confidential setting, with a guide specialized in art history.
Juan Gris and the cubist artistic movement
Juan Gris, along with Pablo Picasso and Braque, was one of the leaders of the Cubist movement. This movement shook up the perception of traditional art in Paris at the beginning of the 20th century.
Definition of cubism: Cubism is an artistic movement that began in the 20th century. A veritable revolution in painting and sculpture, the movement influenced architecture, literature and music. Cubism was born in Paris in 1907 and evolved mainly in the Paris region with Pablo Picasso, Juan Gris and Georges Braque.
Cubism’s heyday came between 1910 and 1912 with the Analytical Cubism period, followed by Synthetic Cubism and finally Orphism.
Synthetic cubism: Synthetic cubism puts the dimensions of objects back into paintings, making works more realistic and less distorted.
orphism: this operation of cubism comes from Guillaume Apollinaire, who linked cubism to his poems, referring to his poem Orphée, which deals with pure poetry.
The First World War (1914-1918) interrupted the movement. Cubism was replaced by the Dada movement, geometric abstraction and art deco.
Works by Juan Gris
Here is a selection of works by Juan Gris that we think are worth presenting:
Still life with mirror, painted in 1910 – In this still life, we can see the beginnings of his Cubist period, with the inversion of planes and points of perspective. The problem of light distribution on objects is also addressed.
Dans les maisons à Paris, painted in 1911 – Gris paints these buildings in an attempt to highlight their volume, using segmentation of planes in the facades and roofs of the houses.
Bottles and Knife, painted in 1912 – This is one of the still lifes in which Juan Gris applied Cubism. It features bottles and plates.
Composition with clock, painted in 1912 – In this work, Gris created a linear frame that breaks down the objects and allows different points of view.
Violin and guitar, painted 1913 – In this still life, the three-dimensionality of the objects, which are arranged in two sets, is explored. One, formed by the guitar and violin, occupies the center of the picture, and the other, formed by a bottle, wallpaper and tablecloth. Gris creates relationships between the two sets, through interwoven planes and lines, by associating the elements represented.
Le Petit Déjeuner, painted 1915 – This painting by Juan Gris in October 1915 was executed in oil and charcoal. It depicts a coffee mill, a coffeepot and a compotier.